B.C. avalanche victim airlifted to hospital with ‘significant’ injuries

A helicopter carrying North Shore Rescue volunteers lands at Vancouver General Hospital on Feb. 2, 2025. (NSR)

A skier was airlifted to hospital, suffering from hypothermia and serious injuries, after he was partially buried in an avalanche Sunday on northern Vancouver Island.

Avalanche Canada says the slide occurred around 2:20 p.m. in the west bowl backcountry of Mount Cain, an alpine resort approximately 130 kilometres northwest of Campbell River.

The skier was among a three-person group but was the only one caught in the slide, which measured roughly 100 metres across and ran approximately 150 to 200 metres downhill, according to the agency.

Local ski patrol and Campbell River Search and Rescue volunteers were called to the scene while volunteers with North Shore Rescue responded in a helicopter from the Lower Mainland, using night-vision goggles as the evening began to set in.

North Shore Rescue says the man had sustained multiple injuries, including a “significant leg injury,” and was hypothermic when he was pulled from the snow.

Direct-to-hospital flight

The responding North Shore Rescue crew included an emergency room physician with advanced medical equipment, the group said in a social media post.

“Cloud conditions were difficult, but the helicopter was able to find a path into the Mount Cain area and land at their base shortly after the Cain volunteers had brought the subject out of the field,” the post said.

The victim was treated on scene and inside the helicopter, but required urgent hospital care, according to the rescue group.

“Given his condition, the decision was made to fly directly to the Vancouver General Hospital rooftop helipad for immediate access to their trauma care and surgeons.”

The direct field-to-hospital flight would mark a first for North Shore Rescue, which said it was recently granted clearance to land on the Vancouver General Hospital rooftop for injuries involving potential loss of life or limb.

“This marks the first time that North Shore Rescue has been able to fly a critically injured subject directly to the helicopter landing pad,” the group said, expressing gratitude to the hospital and the Vancouver Coastal Health authority for approving the flights.

“This initiative has the potential to save lives in the years to come,” North Shore Rescue said.

B.C. avalanche conditions ‘considerable’

The agency credited local volunteers and the two people who were with the victim when he was caught in the slide with providing immediate assistance, saying they “were able to reach and extract the seriously injured subject in very difficult conditions.”

Avalanche Canada says the snow surface in the Mount Cain backcountry on Sunday was a very hard crust of ice covering recent storm snow and the existing snowpack.

The avalanche danger rating for Vancouver Island and much of the B.C. backcountry remained “considerable” on Tuesday with unstable storm slabs likely to be triggered by recreationists due to the volume of new snowfall, according to the agency.